12x12 area enclosed as coop/run all in one. How many chickens?

[kaybee123]

I am building a covered 12x12 enclosed area with a roof on top of the whole thing, three sides have 4 ft of galvanized tin on the bottom half and hardware cloth 2 1/2 ft to the roof. 4th side will be hardware cloth only. I live in sunny FL. Inside this are I will attach a roost bar and nesting boxes so it's the coop and run are together all in one . How many chickens can comfortably be in there? They will not free range but they will get grass, herbs and veggies/fruit daily inside the enclosure. I know it's 3-4 ft for coop and 10 sq ft for run, but I'm confused with it being an all in one. Thank you for reading! This is someone else's pic but I'm doing something similar. Mine will have hardware cloth in top not tin all the way up and mine slants to the open hardware cloth end with a long overhang.

 

[chickluvinfreak]

I would still give them at least 10 Sq ft each. Anything less and they will be cranky and pecking on each other during the day.

 

[kaybee123]

I would still give them at least 10 Sq ft each. Anything less and they will be cranky and pecking on each other during the day.

So 14 chickens with 12x12 = 144 sq ft? Making sure my math is correct.

 

[chickluvinfreak]

Yeah that's about right. Do you have any bantams because they take up half the space.

 

[kaybee123]

No. I have the following:

Blue Isbars (Silverudd Blues)
Lavender Orpingtons
French Black Copper Marans
Cream Legbars
BBS Ameraucanas

I plan to have different height things for them to roam on (but roosts the highest) so they can be on the ground or at a higher height to maximize space. Swings, perches, sandbox to dust in, etc.

 

[kaybee123]

Thank you for your help!

 

[chickluvinfreak]

I'm glad to help. You have a pretty cool assortment of birds and it sounds like you'll have a really nice coop when your finished.

 

[junebuggena]

The formula for the average, Leghorn sized bird is 4 sq ft of coop space plus 10 sq ft of run space, for a total of 14 sq ft of space per bird. If you choose larger, dual-purpose breeds, the formula is about 5 sq ft of coop space and about 12 sq ft of run space, for a total of 17 sq ft per bird. This is just a baseline starting point. Some individuals require more room, some need less.
You'll be able to keep about 8 to 10 in that sort of setup.